Counties in Kentucky by unemployment rate

Martin County had the highest unemployment rate of 120 counties in November 2025, at 7.4%. Woodford County had the lowest, at 3%. The median was 4.1% and the figure for Kentucky was 4.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest7.4Martin County
Median4.1120 counties
Kentucky4.4History

Top 40 counties, November 2025

CSVChart (SVG)

Martin CountyMartin County: 7.4 %7.4Lewis CountyLewis County: 6.7 %6.7Magoffin CountyMagoffin County: 6.7 %6.7Wolfe CountyWolfe County: 6.4 %6.4Jackson CountyJackson County: 6.3 %6.3Pike CountyPike County: 6.3 %6.3Elliott CountyElliott County: 6.1 %6.1Carter CountyCarter County: 5.7 %5.7Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 5.7 %5.7Harlan CountyHarlan County: 5.6 %5.6Johnson CountyJohnson County: 5.5 %5.5Knott CountyKnott County: 5.4 %5.4Bell CountyBell County: 5.3 %5.3Clay CountyClay County: 5.3 %5.3Floyd CountyFloyd County: 5.3 %5.3Knox CountyKnox County: 5.3 %5.3Estill CountyEstill County: 5.2 %5.2McCreary CountyMcCreary County: 5.2 %5.2Menifee CountyMenifee County: 5.2 %5.2Wayne CountyWayne County: 5.2 %5.2Breathitt CountyBreathitt County: 5.1 %5.1Grayson CountyGrayson County: 5 %5Bath CountyBath County: 4.9 %4.9Greenup CountyGreenup County: 4.9 %4.9Laurel CountyLaurel County: 4.9 %4.9Letcher CountyLetcher County: 4.9 %4.9Morgan CountyMorgan County: 4.8 %4.8Owsley CountyOwsley County: 4.8 %4.8Christian CountyChristian County: 4.7 %4.7Clinton CountyClinton County: 4.7 %4.7Edmonson CountyEdmonson County: 4.7 %4.7Mason CountyMason County: 4.7 %4.7Muhlenberg CountyMuhlenberg County: 4.7 %4.7Rowan CountyRowan County: 4.7 %4.7Leslie CountyLeslie County: 4.6 %4.6Marion CountyMarion County: 4.6 %4.6Boyd CountyBoyd County: 4.5 %4.5Ohio CountyOhio County: 4.5 %4.5Robertson CountyRobertson County: 4.5 %4.5Rockcastle CountyRockcastle County: 4.5 %4.5
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesNovember 2025 (%)Change on November 2024
1Martin County7.4-1.6 pts
2Lewis County6.7-0.9 pts
2Magoffin County6.7-0.9 pts
4Wolfe County6.4-1.6 pts
5Jackson County6.3-0.7 pts
5Pike County6.3+0.4 pts
7Elliott County6.1-2 pts
8Carter County5.7-1 pts
8Lawrence County5.7-1.6 pts
10Harlan County5.6-1.7 pts
11Johnson County5.5-0.8 pts
12Knott County5.4-1.1 pts
13Bell County5.3-0.9 pts
13Clay County5.3-1.4 pts
13Floyd County5.3-1.1 pts
13Knox County5.3-1.1 pts
17Estill County5.2-0.7 pts
17McCreary County5.2-0.7 pts
17Menifee County5.2-0.9 pts
17Wayne County5.2-0.5 pts
21Breathitt County5.1-1.5 pts
22Grayson County5-0.3 pts
23Bath County4.9-1.1 pts
23Greenup County4.9-1 pts
23Laurel County4.9-0.8 pts
23Letcher County4.9-1.1 pts
27Morgan County4.8-0.6 pts
27Owsley County4.8-1 pts
29Christian County4.7-0.8 pts
29Clinton County4.7-0.4 pts
29Edmonson County4.7-0.6 pts
29Mason County4.7-0.8 pts
29Muhlenberg County4.7-0.9 pts
29Rowan County4.7-0.6 pts
35Leslie County4.6-1.4 pts
35Marion County4.6-0.4 pts
37Boyd County4.5-1 pts
37Ohio County4.5-1.1 pts
37Robertson County4.5-1.4 pts
37Rockcastle County4.5-0.8 pts
41Breckinridge County4.4-0.8 pts
41Butler County4.4-0.7 pts
41Lee County4.4-0.7 pts
41Lincoln County4.4-0.8 pts
45Calloway County4.3-0.5 pts
45Fleming County4.3-1.3 pts
45Green County4.3-1 pts
45Hardin County4.3-0.4 pts
45Marshall County4.3-0.8 pts
45Montgomery County4.3-0.7 pts
45Taylor County4.3-0.4 pts
52Logan County4.2-0.6 pts
52Perry County4.2-0.7 pts
52Pulaski County4.2-1 pts
55Ballard County4.1-0.7 pts
55Boyle County4.1-0.6 pts
55Bracken County4.1-0.9 pts
55Casey County4.1-1 pts
55Crittenden County4.1-1 pts
55Livingston County4.1-1 pts
55Lyon County4.1-1 pts
55Madison County4.1-0.5 pts
55Meade County4.1-0.4 pts
55Trigg County4.1-0.7 pts
55Whitley County4.1-0.5 pts
66Adair County4-0.7 pts
66Barren County4-0.9 pts
66Fulton County4-0.8 pts
66Hancock County4-1.3 pts
66Henderson County4-0.6 pts
66Monroe County4-0.7 pts
72Carlisle County3.9-0.8 pts
72Gallatin County3.9-0.6 pts
72Hopkins County3.9-1.1 pts
72Mercer County3.9-0.4 pts
72Metcalfe County3.9-0.8 pts
72Russell County3.9-1.2 pts
72Simpson County3.9-0.7 pts
72Webster County3.9-1.1 pts
80Hart County3.8-1 pts
80Hickman County3.8-0.8 pts
80Jefferson County3.8-0.6 pts
80McCracken County3.8-0.8 pts
80McLean County3.8-1.3 pts
80Powell County3.8-0.9 pts
80Union County3.8-0.4 pts
87Allen County3.7-0.6 pts
87Garrard County3.7-0.9 pts
87Henry County3.7-0.7 pts
87Larue County3.7-0.8 pts
87Nelson County3.7-0.6 pts
87Owen County3.7-0.9 pts
87Pendleton County3.7-0.8 pts
94Anderson County3.6-0.8 pts
94Bullitt County3.6-0.6 pts
94Clark County3.6-0.9 pts
94Daviess County3.6-1 pts
94Grant County3.6-0.7 pts
94Trimble County3.6-0.6 pts
100Caldwell County3.5-0.5 pts
100Carroll County3.5-0.9 pts
100Cumberland County3.5-0.9 pts
100Harrison County3.5-0.5 pts
100Nicholas County3.5-0.5 pts
100Spencer County3.5-0.6 pts
100Warren County3.5-0.6 pts
107Boone County3.4-0.6 pts
107Campbell County3.4-0.8 pts
107Franklin County3.4-0.8 pts
107Graves County3.4-0.8 pts
107Jessamine County3.4-0.7 pts
107Kenton County3.4-0.7 pts
107Washington County3.4-0.4 pts
114Bourbon County3.3-0.6 pts
114Oldham County3.3-0.6 pts
114Scott County3.3-0.6 pts
114Todd County3.3-0.9 pts
118Fayette County3.2-0.7 pts
118Shelby County3.2-0.6 pts
120Woodford County3-0.5 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force, using the survey definition of unemployment: without work, available and looking for work. Spain: EPA, aged 16 and over. EU: Labour Force Survey, aged 15 to 74. United States: civilian labour force aged 16 and over, from the Current Population Survey for the nation and from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, consistent with that survey, for states and counties. Other countries and the World: ILO modelled estimates published by the World Bank, aged 15 and over.

Survey-based. Available for Spain, regions, provinces, EU countries, US states and US counties, not Spanish municipalities. For municipalities use registered_unemployment_rate. US national and state rates are seasonally adjusted; county rates are not. Countries without a national or Eurostat series get the annual ILO modelled estimate, a model output rather than a survey result.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Martin County, with 7.4% in November 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Woodford County, with 3% in November 2025.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Unemployment rate: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings